Missional Women

Luke 7:36-50 is such a beautiful picture of worship. The prostitute saw who Jesus was and was moved to action. She made a choice to give Him something incredibly precious and valuable to her, her perfume, her livelihood. The most important thing to a prostitute was their perfume, which this lady held in this alabaster jar. Her devotion was sacrificial, intentional and it was courageous. What is your alabaster jar?When Jesus entered Simon’s house, he did not give him a basin to wash His feet and did not greet Him with a kiss. This would be like bringing a special guest into your home and not opening the door for them, taking their coat and saying hello. What Simon did was very offensive. I wonder if he was slightly jealous of Jesus and that is why he went out of his way to try to show Jesus was nothing special. Perhaps this is why the prostitute is crying. Wondering, “Don’t they know who He is? Why are they treating Him this way?”

I love how Jesus doesn’t just sweep things under the carpet, but addresses attitudes and actions. He brings this offense to Simon’s attention as well as bring truth to the lies he was believing. A humble man at this point would apologize for his lack of respect and thank the woman for compensating for his rudeness. But Simon is not able to recognize his faults, but is only able to point the finger at the woman.Still talking to Simon, Jesus turns to the woman. How beautiful! He is looking right into her eyes and starts bragging on her in front of the entire room of people. Who in these men’s worlds would be the most undeserving of honor? A prostitute woman, but Jesus seizes the opportunity to brag on her because of her faith.

This story is incredibly shocking to the men in that room because not only does Jesus praise and honor a despised women, but goes on to make her the noble hero. And His honoring of her brings with it the benefit of restoring her to community.

This was a common habit of Jesus. He bragged on John the Baptist, the paralytic’s friends, Mary, the woman with a demon possessed daughter, the centurion man Turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” (Luke 7:9) and why? Why would God of the universe, who is able to see our hearts, stop what He is doing and honor flawed people? One reason is because He values life and wants to give dignity."

So in light of Jesus, the bragger on great people...

Here are some great people I know. I've already told you about Jesse & Rhonda, Angi, Austin, Gore and the Haiti pastor so here are some others.

My mom. She is so incredible! She is the most generous person I know. She could be retired, but she works so she can give money and gifts away. Wow huh! Her wisdom and grace are beautiful and she is just plain fun to be with. Her sacrificial attitude reminds me so much of Jesus.

Don Brewster. He started Agape International Missions who I took a team of girls to work with this summer. Him and his wife Bridget are my heros, giving sacrificially to rescue and restore young girls from the sex trade. Read more about the trip here and here.

Nate and Erin. The undistractable team, set on pleasing God and being about His mission. You should see some of the stuff the enemy throws at them and they walk through fire without getting burned. It's beautiful! Erin is my accountability partner and Nate is Austins. Nate is one of the most gifted teachers I know. He blogs at the great ministry resource site Eternity Impact.

Eli and MandyWe met Eli and Mandy down in Durango. They both love the Lord and want their lives to please Him in every way. God has gifted Eli with outstanding musical abilities and in teaching. Every time you get in a conversation with Eli, he wants to share with you something the Lord taught him. Eli is the most honoring person I know. He uses every opportunity he can get to honor people.

When Eli lived in Durango, God was challenging him to be a man of honor. To not speak against his leaders but instead be a warrior, a defender for them (And isn’t it interesting that it is most common to talk bad about our authorities, when they are the exact ones God calls us to honor). He overheard his friend talking bad about the leader of the ministry and Eli actually went up and punched the guy. After that, the gossip stopped as this group of guys started bragging on the leader and on others.

Awhile later the ministry quadrupled in size and the enemy got people gossiping and talking bad about each other instead of honoring each other. That year within a few months the group had gone back down to the size it was before. Honoring others has incredibly rewarding fruit, whereas gossip has incredibly destructive fruit.Here's an interview of Nate interviewing Eli on Durango radio, "The God Solution" is an interactive show that will discuss answers to humanity's questions about God and God's answers for humanity's questions.

Rick James who has a passion for the Great Commission and enabling others to live for it. He has been inspirational to me in His books, Jesus without Religion, Postcards to Corinth, Thirsty, One Million Ways to Die and by encouraging me in writing. And then yet to meet but favorite teachers Louie Giglio, Pricilla Shierer and Howard Hendricks.I guess that's 10. I'm so grateful to live in the same time period of these great people!